IBM

Senior Software Engineer - Confluent DevProd

IBM$110K — $130K *
Information Technology
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field (or equivalent experience)
  • At least 5 years of experience in software engineering, specifically with cloud services and large-scale distributed systems
  • Strong fundamentals in distributed systems and reliability
  • Proficient in at least one statically typed language (Java or Go) and a scripting language (Python)
  • Demonstrated ability to independently manage projects from design through rollout
  • Excellent communication skills for mentoring and cross-functional collaboration
  • Experience managing production services with a focus on operational excellence and automation.

Responsibilities

  • Build and operate secure, multi-tenant internal developer platform services
  • Improve pre-production and performance testing by automating and modeling workloads
  • Explore and integrate AI-assisted workflows to enhance developer productivity
  • Deliver projects collaboratively, from problem framing to documentation and training
  • Contribute to team culture through on-call support, documentation, and mentoring.

Benefits

  • Opportunity to work remotely from anywhere in Canada
  • Engagement in meaningful, impactful projects
  • Access to evolving AI tools and frameworks
  • Collaborative team culture with mentoring opportunities
  • Work environment focused on developer experience and operational excellence.
Full Job Description
Your role and responsibilities

Our team sits within the Developer Productivity (DevProd) organization and is responsible for ensuring that Confluent engineers can safely and efficiently build, test, and operate our cloud at scale. As a Senior Software Engineer, you will design, build, and operate internal platform services and tools that improve developer experience and overall engineering velocity. You'll take ownership of meaningful projects-often with some ambiguity-partnering with senior engineers and stakeholders to shape solutions, implement them, and support them in production and critical pre-prod environments.

This role is ideal for someone who:
  • Enjoys platform services work: multi-tenant, internal-facing services used by hundreds of engineers.
  • Cares deeply about testability, reliability, and developer experience in complex, distributed systems.
  • Thrives in R&D-leaning, somewhat ambiguous spaces where you prototype, iterate, and converge on the right solution.
  • Is curious about practical AI-assisted developer workflows and comfortable learning and evaluating new tools.
  • Is highly self-driven, naturally takes initiative, and does things that are important without being asked.

What You Will Do:
  • Build and operate internal developer platform services - design secure, multi-tenant, and scalable services that integrate into existing DevProd systems (e.g., CI/CD, test infrastructure, developer portals), and own their reliability, performance, and monitoring.
  • Improve pre-production and performance testing capabilities - model realistic workloads and stress scenarios, automate performance/scale/regression tests as part of CI/CD, and provide actionable, self-service reporting that helps teams quickly see where their services break or degrade.
  • Explore and integrate AI-assisted workflows for developers - evaluate AI tools and frameworks, run data-driven experiments, and, where they add real value, productionize workflows such as triage assistants, anomaly detection over pre-prod metrics, or intelligent test selection, with appropriate guardrails and visibility.
  • Deliver projects end to end in a collaborative way - frame problems, write clear design docs, break work into milestones, drive implementation with your peers, and participate in rollout plans that include documentation, training, and feedback loops with partner teams.
  • Contribute to team and engineering culture - participate in on-call and incident response for the components you own, write clear documentation, mentor junior engineers through design and code reviews, and help evolve best practices for DevProd and platform engineering.

    This job can be performed from anywhere in Canada.


Required education

Bachelor's Degree

Preferred education

Master's Degree

Required technical and professional expertise

  • Education & Experience - Education in Computer Science or a related field (or equivalent experience), and at least 5 years of professional software engineering experience building and operating cloud services, platforms, or large-scale distributed systems.
  • Technical & Platform Depth - Strong fundamentals in distributed systems and reliability; proficiency in at least one statically typed language (e.g., Java, Go) plus a scripting language (e.g., Python); experience with DevProd/DevOps tooling such as CI/CD, containers, and infrastructure-as-code.
  • Execution & Ownership - Demonstrated ability to independently drive projects from design through rollout, breaking work into milestones, managing risk, and delivering high-quality outcomes on time.
  • Collaboration & Leadership - Strong written and verbal communication skills; experience mentoring other engineers, leading design and code reviews, and influencing cross-functional stakeholders in a platform setting.
  • Operational Excellence - Proven track record owning services in production or critical pre-prod environments, including on-call, incident response, and postmortems, with a strong bias towards automation to reduce toil and improve reliability.
  • AI Awareness - Practical experience or strong interest in integrating AI/ML or LLM-based capabilities into developer or platform workflows, along with an understanding of how to design sensible guardrails and instrumentation for safe use. You don't need to be an AI expert, but you're comfortable evaluating and adopting new tools.


Preferred technical and professional experience

  • Hands-on experience building or integrating AI-powered developer tools (e.g., code assistants, triage copilots, anomaly detection over logs/metrics, intelligent test selection) in production environments.
  • Deep experience with performance testing and benchmarking frameworks for distributed systems or multi-tenant cloud services, including workload modeling and automated quality gates.


OTHER RELEVANT JOB DETAILS

Must have the ability to work in Canada without sponsorship.

This role will involve working with technology that is covered by Export Regulations sanctions. If you are a Foreign National from any of the following US sanctioned countries (Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and the Crimea, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia regions of Ukraine) on a work permit, you are not eligible for employment in this position.

The salary range for the position is based on a full-time schedule. Your ultimate salary within this range may vary depending on your job-related skills and experience for this position.

About IBM

Sequent Computer Systems designs and manufactures multiprocessing computer systems based on Cache Coherent Non-Uniform Memory Access architecture, which are used primarily as application and database servers for commercial applications. Through a partnership with Oracle Corporation, Sequent became a dominant high-end UNIX platform in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Later it introduced a next-generation high-end platform for UNIX and Windows NT based on non-uniform memory access architecture, NUMA-Q. Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. was incorporated in 1983 and is based in Beaverton, Oregon. In July 1999 Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. was acquired by International Business Machines Corp.

IBM Careers

Joining IBM presents a prime opportunity to be part of our global team of professionals, leading the way in technological innovation and business solutions. At IBM, we offer more than just job opportunities; we provide a platform for growth, leadership development, and a chance to be at the forefront of industry innovation. Work You’ll Do At IBM, your work impacts global markets and helps reshape industries. As part of our team, you will contribute to projects that harness the power of cloud computing, AI, and blockchain technologies. With IBM, you are positioned to lead in the marketplace, leveraging our deep industry expertise and commitment to digital innovation. Transform Your Career IBM is not just a company; it's a culture of innovation and leadership. We are committed to diversity and providing an inclusive environment where all professionals can thrive. Joining IBM means being part of a team that values your unique skills and perspectives. IBM offers a variety of career paths, including full-time positions and internships, that allow you to explore your interests and develop new skills. Our professional development programs are designed to help you grow at every stage of your career, featuring robust training, certification support, and opportunities for advancement. Innovate with Us Engage in work that matters with a team of over 350,000 IBMers worldwide, driving progress in over 170 countries. At IBM, innovation isn’t just about technology, it’s about transforming how businesses operate and compete. Your work will deliver solutions that anticipate and fulfill the needs of our clients in an ever-evolving landscape. Be Part of a Great Team IBMers are diverse, talented, and globally connected. You’ll collaborate with thought leaders and industry experts who are shaping the future of technology. Our culture fosters creativity, teamwork, and the continuous pursuit of excellence. Networking and Professional Growth IBM is deeply invested in the professional growth of its employees. We encourage networking within the company to foster connections that can lead to greater innovation and career advancement. Our leadership is committed to providing every employee with the tools they need to succeed, from mentorship programs to diversity training. Explore Job Opportunities Whether you’re looking for an internship, a graduate role, or a leadership position, IBM offers a range of career opportunities. Our hiring process is designed to be transparent and fair, providing you with all the resources you need to succeed in your interview and resume preparation. Stay Connected Join Our Team Discover the various positions available that match your skills and interests. At IBM, we look for passionate, curious, and solution-driven team players. Explore our open positions and find where you can make a difference. Keep Up to Date Stay informed with career tips, insider perspectives, and industry-leading insights you can put to use today—all from the people who work here. Job Alert Emails Customize your subscription to receive job alerts, the latest news, and insider tips tailored to your preferences. See what exciting and rewarding opportunities await at IBM. Join IBM and be part of a legacy of leadership and innovation. Shape your future and build a career designed to last.
Learn more about IBM
Size
307,600 employees
Market Cap
$128 billion
Industry
Net Income
$5.5 billion
Founded
1911
5 Year Trend
-6.4%
Revenue
$73.6 billion
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